The Dappered Guide To Inexpensive iPhone Alternatives

July 20, 2010 By Paul| Heads up: Buying via our links may result in us getting a commission. Here's why.

The Dappered Guide to Inexpensive iPhone Alternatives

By Dappered Technology Correspondent Paul Olson
Read More of Paul’s work at pauldavidolson.com/blog. You’ll probably learn something. I always do.

Face it. There’s never been a better time to not own an iPhone. Touch the iPhone 4 in the wrong spot and it basically drops your call… but it looks cool, right? And goodbye unlimited data plan. AT&T needs your money – you’ll be paying per megabyte. What should you expect to pay for this call-dropping wonder? Well, $199-299 for the phone, then $15 (200 MB) to $45 (2 GB + tethering) for data, and $40 (450 minutes) to $70 (unlimited) for voice, and another $5 (200) to $20 (unlimited) for text messaging. That totals over $3,500 over two years for the expensive plan. Forget it. Here are the deals:.

Virgin Mobile

Virgin Mobile’s base BlackBerry plan starts at $35 a month. It includes unlimited data and text and 300 minutes of talk (but you need to buy the phone for $299). If you mostly use your phone for text messaging and email, it’s time to stop over-paying for voice service. This is the best smartphone deal in the US. And the commitment? Nada. No contract. The two-year all-in price? $1,139 (66% off the iPhone plan).

Want a touch-screen and an even better deal? Try LG’s Rumor Touch. For $149 you get a touch-screen phone, unlimited data and texts and 300 minutes of talk-time. And Virgin knocks $10 off your monthly bill because it’s not a BlackBerry. That’s right, $25 a month. That works out to $749 over two years (80% off the expensive iPhone plan).

Boost Mobile

Boost Mobile is better if you talk a lot. Their BlackBerry plan is $60 for unlimited data, text, and voice (plus $199 for the phone). Goddamn! That’s $1,639 for two years.

And their new i1 is the world’s first no-contract Google Android phone … with push-to-talk, of course. I’m not thrilled by this phone, but if you’re itching for Android, it’s worth a look. Pricing is still unknown, but expect $399 for the phone and at least $50 a month for the unlimited plan..

3 million people were duped into the iPhone 4. While it may impress the ladies when you pull it out in a bar, all of these phones make it a lot easier to afford buying those ladies a few drinks. And if you do end up giving one a call, you just might get through. Saving money and functionality – that’s a lot better than a free case.

I love this post so much! I got rid of my iphone because I was tired of paying 85 bucks a month and that was with a corporate discount. Now how ever I look at my “feature” phone and miss a smartphone. The sad thing is I only save 20 bucks a month. I have been a customer of AT&T since it was cingular but the pricing is getting crazy.

Just last week I ported my number from AT&T to Virgin and sold my iPhone 3G, which I bought on launch day and for which I have been paying $66 a month for the last two years. (This was the minimum/base plan with texting turned off entirely and a corporate discount applied.) I found a BlackBerry for $250 and will be switching to that from my $10 “tide me over” phone. As far as I’m concerned, Virgin Mobile has the best deals going right now (with their BlackBerry plans in particular).

(BTW, I was contemplating an Android device but ultimately decided against it given that Boost’s i1 is one of the few affordable choices. I would certainly avoid that phone.)

Really though, I got the iPhone 4 after having my 3G for 2 years. I am a right handed user, so the whole antenna death grip issue does not affect me (must hold it in left hand to see a problem). The 4 is a huge upgrade over my 3G (which I already enjoyed), so while it may be your opinion that I was duped I have to disagree.

I am not a blind consumer who just jumps at shiny things, I am a developer who looks at things critically. So when I put all the facts together, the iPhone 4 was a win for me. I have a lot of other developer friends and acquaintances who found the same thing.

Also, since I spend the majority of my time in wifi-covered areas, I was able to downgrade my data plan with the new data payment scheme they are using and saved myself $15 per month. I am a heavy user of my iPhone and in the past 6 months I have not gone over 200MB once. So people complaining about no more unlimited either aren’t taking advantage of free wifi, or are clueless as to their data usage. I can’t imagine using over 2GB of data, unless I am constantly streaming music and videos wherever I go. For the majority of AT&T users the new plans will benefit them.

I am 100% happy with my purchase, and to be honest the blogosphere has COMPLETELY blown the issue out of proportion. I am not even going to take Apple up on their free bumper offer, because I don’t need or want one.

Final note: AT&T has good coverage in my area, so I can’t complain about dropped calls and the like. That said, I do look forward to their exclusivity deal expiring so we aren’t locked to them.

@Bryan, Good to hear you like your iPhone 4. As a [non-Flash 😉 ] developer, there’s definitely an incentive to buying an iPhone – they still have the biggest app marketplace and user base. That’s one the the reasons I have a Nexus One – the need to understand my customers and the devices they use. That said, the phones I mention above offer tremendous value, and if Virgin or Boost offer a non-iDEN Android phone, Apple will need to watch out. Apple’s market share will evaporate.

Just wanted to point out that (although the post seems to mostly call this out for sensationalism) unlimited data is still available to people who upgraded from an existing iPhone. I’m rocking unlimited on both my iPhone and my iPad still.

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